James Gunn has been teasing Marvel fans for years with his claim that there’s one massive, incredibly well-hidden easter egg that’s never been found in Guardians of the Galaxy. Of course, every now and again, a new contender will emerge and recently, it was thought that someone had finally cracked it, as one fan believed that Fantastic Four villain Galactus was subtly referred to in Guardians, hinting that the World Eater already exists in the MCU.
The theory spawned out of the scene in which the origins of the Infinity Stones is explained for the first time in the franchise by the Collector. YouTuber Second Son suggested that the planet featured in the flashback resembled Galactus’ homeworld of Taa and the staff held by the Celestial who was seen to wield the Power Stone resembled the big man’s distinctive helmet.
But is this really that mythical last easter egg that Gunn’s been teasing? Well, we’re sorry to be the bearers of bad news, but it’s not. The director took to Twitter to respond to the theory and revealed that not only is it not the big easter egg, but there were also no deliberate nods to Galactus placed in Guardians at all. “Getting lots of messages about Galactus in the Collector scenes,” Gunn wrote on the social media platform. “No, he’s not there in any way.”
We should have seen this coming, really. There’s never been any crossover with the Marvel and Fox universes as the two studios’ lawyers would have tied them up in legal knots before any such thing could be attempted. Even if it was just a small easter egg. Of course, things could be different in the future, if the Disney buyout of Fox eventually goes through. But even then, Marvel chief Kevin Feige says it could be years before X-Men and Fantastic Four characters make their way into the MCU.
So, back to the drawing board it is, then, as that elusive final Guardians of the Galaxy easter egg is still out there. Anyone else feel like they’re in Ready Player One? Or maybe that should be Ready Player Gunn?